


us and the sky

by eunbinatozaki



Series: the years of wonder [1]
Category: PRISTIN (Band), Red Velvet (K-pop Band), TWICE (Band), 여자친구 | GFriend (Band), 우주소녀 | Cosmic Girls | WJSN
Genre: F/F, college life au, literally all the girls from the groups will appear, relationships added in summary with each update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-03
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-01-08 08:40:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12250878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eunbinatozaki/pseuds/eunbinatozaki
Summary: au stories of a bunch of girls living life.latest chapter: momo/sana/jihyo pt. 3 [final]





	1. and you’ve got me (forever)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> '95 line is a mess.
> 
> or, im nayeon and kim sojung have spent years traveling to a destination, and somehow, nayoung, xuan yi, and jiyeon are along for the ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there's also a super long flashback-ish sequence but i can't help it, these two work well together in my mind.
> 
> \+ nayoung only has, like, one line, but she's still relevant, and she's on the ride, too.
> 
> // twitter: @chuuniversai

sojung is three-fourths through her second bottle of beer and only two-fifty words into her fifteen-hundred-word essay when she finally hears it.

there’s a thud, a groan, and then a muffled curse of “fuckin’ wooden doors” before the front door to her apartment is unceremoniously opened and there stands im nayeon in all her rumpled and glassy eyed glory, an obviously drunk but more put together xuan yi and a scowling but just as drunk jiyeon standing behind her, hands out instinctively as if they’ve had to keep nayeon from falling every step of the way back home.

sojung knows the girl is drunk. if it wasn’t from the faraway look in her eyes or the way she seems to sway against an imaginary breeze before righting herself again, then it’s definitely from the way she smiles at sojung, so wide and bright and full of carefree wonder. it’s the same smile she gave sojung four years ago.

she only knows it’s _that_ smile because nayeon was drunk then, too, when she first saw it.

(they’re both 18 and two weeks into post-graduation from high school and drunk for the first time off some expensive aged wine that nayeon had grabbed from her parents cellar. it tastes like old grapefruits mixed with even older cherries, or so sojung thinks, but it doesn’t stop her from taking sip after sip with nayeon, the two passing the bottle back and forth while laying on the roof of sojung’s car that’s parked just across the street from the front gates of their former school.

they don’t speak much, just pass back and forth, until nayeon suddenly sets the bottle down and just _laughs_. she laughs like she hasn’t done it in years. like a crack in a dam just broke and it’s gushing out with no want or will to stop it. nayeon laughs and laughs and laughs until sojung has to break their unspoken rule of not speaking to ask if she’s okay.

’it’s just—“ nayeon manages to wheeze out, only controlling herself with a snort and smacking her hands against her cheeks, ‘i never thought we’d actually do it, you know? like, duh, i knew we’d actually do it because you’re so smart and you helped me a lot with classes to the point that i got a lot smarter, too, but just… you know? sometimes, i thought we wouldn’t make it.’

and sojung does understand what she means. for the longest time, it seemed like they wouldn’t somehow end up here together. they’d already lost xuan yi to an overseas summer internship, and both jiyeon and nayoung had gotten their acceptance letters to the college of all their dreams and had practically high-tailed it out of town the moment they got their diplomas. so sojung got it. nayeon was afraid they’d all go their separate ways and never be together again.

but sojung doesn’t say anything. she just takes the bottle from its spot between them, sets it aside, and pulls nayeon into a hug. she’s hugged nayeon before, plenty of times. she hugged her after nayeon fell off the swing set when they were seven. she hugged her after nayeon broke up with her first boyfriend in the seventh grade after she said she wasn’t sad but sojung could hear the crack in her voice and see the tightness of her shoulders. she hugged her after nayeon came out to her when they were sixteen and nayeon had already yelled and screamed and broken sojung’s phone by accident. sojung has hugged nayeon plenty of times, but this one is different.

this one says ‘i’m here and you’re here.’ this one says, ‘we’re together.’ this one says, ‘nothing will get between us.’

and she knows nayeon understands. because even though they both know that they would end up making it, that they’d be reunited with their friends again in college come fall, that nayeon was only worried about if sojung would still be by her side. and she is, she can’t think of being somewhere else. and she tells her as much, quietly and drunkenly and with all the promise in her voice.

and nayeon pulls back from the hug and _smiles._ ) 

”whatcha thinkin’ ‘bout, sojungie?” nayeon’s suddenly close and standing beside her where she sits on the couch, bunny smile and crescent eyes still focused on her, her jean jacket already half off her shoulders and one heel already off her foot and settled in the middle of the room. sojung means to tell her to pick it up, to put it with the other shoes so no one (namely nayoung in her half asleep daze) trips over it, but suddenly her laptop is closed and pushed off to the side and then she has a lap full of im nayeon, a pleased sigh leaving her lips as she settles more comfortably in her now claimed seat, then, “hm? what’s on sojungie’s mind?”

”my paper,” sojung mumbles dryly, but she doesn’t try to move nayeon and start working again. because nayeon is more important than writing a paper on the significance of flowers in movies for her film theory class. instead, she wraps her arms around the girl’s waist, playfully rolling her eyes at the way nayeon just snuggles more into the embrace, and then looks to the other two in the door way. “how was the party?”

xuan yi stills looks as she does, but if anything, jiyeon seems to have bristled even further. if the way she pulls xuan yi inside and closes the door with a huff is anything to go by. she points a finger at nayeon, though her hand shakes and sojung can’t tell whether she’s truly pointing at nayeon or at the hole in the wall from the time they decided to play indoor bowling with a watermelon and plastic cups.

(apparently, a watermelon _is_ a too heavy ball and _yes_ nayoung would still notice the hole even if they did brilliantly try to make her believe she kicked the hole there herself after one too many drinks.)

“that heathen—“, there’s a whine of disagreement from nayeon at the term before she’s getting comfortable again and seemingly falling asleep after a few moments of silence from her, “challenged heehyun to a rap battle during the middle of the party after she already drank herself stupid.” 

sojung shrugs, because really, is jiyeon surprised? nayeon does that at every party, and she’s lucky that heehyun keeps indulging her the way she does. “nothing new. nayeon thinks she’s a rapper, let her live the life she chooses.”

that, though, brings a smile to jiyeon’s face, warm and soft and everything that reminds sojung of why jiyeon is a great friend. because then, she leans heavily against xuan yi, looks between the two of them, then just plainly says, “she rapped about how in love with you she is, said you were her ‘muse’ to make ‘dope ass rhymes’.”

sojung freezes, body stiff and tight and looks down at nayeon who’s become peaceful in her sleep. she should be laughing at the obsurdity of the situation, because who else would admit to loving someone in that way other than a drunk nayeon? but she can’t because it’s no secret that sojung has basically loved nayeon since she met her, and she’s loved her in many ways. from platonic to romatic and everything in between. and it’s no secret that everyone knows. she’s cried about her feelings to jiyeon in more than one occasion, and what jiyeon knows, of course xuan yi knows because they’re a package deal. and then somehow nayoung just found out on her own, cornering sojung one day in the library and basically begging her to tell nayeon because the “unresolved sexual tension in the apartment was so obvious that it interrupted her needed sixteen hours of sleep”. hell, even _nayeon_ herself knows, but they’ve still never done anything about it because nayeon has never fully reciprocated the sentiment of loving sojung herself. it was just always this unspoken thing, something they would never cross the line of just yet.

jiyeon doesn’t wait for a reply, because she knows she won’t get one. she knows how they both feel, knows that she’s can’t push them when it’s not her place to push. but she wants this for them, everyone does, and she hopes they get it soon. she blinks a few times when she feels an arm slide around her waist, a suddenly tired looking xuan yi smiling down at her before she’s being led down away from the duo on the couch and down the hall toward their room. she spares a glance back at sojung and nayeon, presses herself closer to xuan yi and lets it be for now.

when sojung is sure that the door to xuan yi and jiyeon’s room is tightly closed, she carefully shifts nayeon off her lap so she can lay on the couch, her head in sojung’s lap, then leans down and lets her lips touch the crown of the girl’s head, feather light and just enough to say that she did it.

“i love you, too.”

and nayeon _smiles_.

(and tucked away in her room, covers pulled to her chin and smile on her face after reading a text from jiyeon about how everything is _finally_ going to change, nayoung sighs contently, “i can finally have my sixteen hours again.”)


	2. you and me & the devil makes three (1 of 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a lot of wondering about the "what if" and just being.
> 
> or, momo and sana are so, so different, but jihyo likes them anyway.  
> \+ other twice girls are mentioned in passing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> because, honestly, momo & sana love each other so much, but they have even more love for jihyo.
> 
> // twitter: @chuuniversai

there’s a look, a quick nod, and then before jihyo knows it, she’s being pulled from her claimed seat at a table in the library, her highlighter flying from her hand and glasses slipping ungracefully down her nose. she was in the middle of her final read-through of her thesis and then she would be done. granted, she’d been dozing off a little and had re-read that same paragraph seven times, but still! 

“come on, hyo! it’s movie night tonight and you’re definitely going. no ifs, ands, or buts.” it’s sana speaking, jihyo notes, watching as sana’s hands quickly gather jihyo’s notes and bags, even bending to pick up her forgotten highlighter, while momo stands beside her, already having swiped jihyo’s coffee from the table with a grin and taking a sip. “we’ve only got a half hour before the girls show up and you’re just in here – studying of all things!”

jihyo sighs. don’t get her wrong, jihyo loves sana and momo. if it weren’t for the two of them, she’d probably still be the quiet girl sitting at the back of the lecture hall, never raising her hand or even looking up from her books to talk to anyone. it wasn’t like she was antisocial or anything, jihyo’s the furthest from that. it’s just that she didn’t care to engage with a bunch of people that she’d never see or hear from again once she graduated and left college life behind. there just wasn’t any point to let herself be seen. so maybe she’s a _little _antisocial when she wants to be.__

but that was until she met them that first time.

jihyo had _heard_ of the two before, how could she not? minatozaki sana was the resident campus busy-body. if there was a party, sana was there. if there was a new club to join, sana was first in line. if there was someone in need of anything, anytime, anywhere, sana was there. and where sana went, there was momo. if sana was the sun, bright and entergetic and always in your face, then momo was the moon, a little darker, a little more laid back, and a lot more mysterious than she let on. momo was more of the “you go ahead, i’ll stay back and watch” type, though that didn’t stop her from throwing her own hat into the ring from time to time. and if sana was the sun and momo was the moon, then jihyo was just jihyo, basking in their light.

somehow, though, jihyo became their partner in a project, something in either physics or english or whatever class that jihyo can’t remember anymore, and more of their time was devoted more to asking jihyo the weirdest questions ( _”what do you mean you’ve never gone skinny dipping? momo, she’s never lived!”_ ) than to their actual project. and honestly, jihyo couldn’t complain. sure, she wanted to get her project done and go back to her plan of not forcing friendships, but it seemed like sana and momo really wanted to be her friend. even when they weren’t meeting up on days to discuss their work, sana would find her in the library and dive into a story about the latest party she went to or concert she saw and somehow it’d be five hours later and jihyo had gotten nothing done. or momo would find her in the cafeteria, staring disinterestedly at her food, then offer to buy her something off campus instead ( _”the food on campus is okay and all if you’re dying, but nothing beats the sushi place down the street. my treat.”_ ) and before jihyo knew it, they were friends.

it wasn’t long until jihyo found out that the two were a thing. if she was being honest with herself, it was kind of obvious. the way momo would lazily call sana ‘babe’ whenever she started getting too energized over a topic and no one could understand her, sana would just smile that warm momo-is-my-everything smile, take a hold of momo's hand and start again more calmly. or how, when they first invited jihyo around to their dorm for a movie night, where she finally met the six girls that were apart of their “circle”, sana and momo were cuddled up the entire night, casually feeding each other popcorn and whispering in each other’s ears during the boring parts of the movies. the casual way they held hands, the small kisses on the cheek that could be written off as platonic but was always, obviously something more. how, whenever jeongyeon or nayeon would make a crude remark about them, they wouldn’t exactly deny them.

jihyo’s known, she’s always known. and if she’s honest with herself, she wishes she was a part of it. she knows they’re close, which isn’t that surprising when you have a group of nine close girls, with some who are closer than others, and when those two are the closest of them all. because nayeon has jeongyeon, chaeyoung has tzuyu, and nayeon claims mina is “too pure” for anyone and dahyun is “too crazy” for anyone, but jihyo wants them. at some point, jihyo went from wanting them to be ‘momo and sana and jihyo’ or “momo and sana plus jihyo” to _momosanajihyo_. all three of them, together, to be close like how momo and sana are. to have something the other girls maybe wouldn’t understand, but would grow to. because jihyo likes the way sana tells her story after story while they ‘study’, likes how momo buys her food off campus every few days, likes when all three of them go out together after finals, how momo and sana leave a space for her when it’s movie night, how they order her favorite drink when they know she’s going to be late, how they can answer a question for her correctly without hesitation, how they know her. jihyo likes it, jihyo likes _them_.

jihyo’s brought out of her musings when a thumb touches the spot between her brows, smoothing out the crease that formed there while she was lost in her mind. she looks to the side and there’s sana, slight worry in her eyes as she pulls her hand back, head cocked to the side and an obvious question on her lips.

“it’s fine, i’m just tired. too much studying, you know?” she smiles, just enough to assure sana, before momo comes up behind her, chin hooked over her shoulder and a slender arm going around her waist. momo is always a cuddler. while sana craves physical affection and will outright ask for it, momo is more quiet, will give what she feels needs to be given and takes what is offered in return. her touch now, though, is a silent question, wanting another confirmation to jihyo’s words, and jihyo likes her even more because she cares. “really, momo. i just stayed up too long going over notes last night and skipped breakfast this morning.”

instead of a response, jihyo just watches the two silently communicate with each other over her shoulder, the slight raise of an eyebrow from sana and subtle quirks of momo's lips saying more between them than words ever could. then, as if they’ve come to some conclusion, momo takes jihyo’s bag from sana, slings it over shoulder, and then they’re leaving the library, one of her hands locked between two of sana’s and momo’s arm still around her waist.

“you can sleep in our room, so you won’t be alone.” it’s sana who speaks first as they’re walking across the nearly deserted campus, a text already sent to the group chat about how they won’t actually be making it to the movie tonight. the girls were reasonably upset, because they made a promise to never miss a movie night again after the time they had to visit dahyun in the hospital after she missed one (because apparently, one missed movie night and no supervision is all dahyun needs to get in trouble), but they get over it quickly when momo chimes in to say that jihyo was too tired and just needs the rest, not to hear jeongyeon come up with backstories for the extras in the movies. and everyone is too soft for momo, but even softer for jihyo, so it’s easy to forgive one missed night. jihyo just nods though, because really, she’s spent so many nights in their dorm that she has her own designated drawer in the dresser, two pairs of shoes by the door, a spare toothbrush and momo always buys her favorite sparkling water and puts it in the fridge for her – she practically lives there with them. it's better and feels way more like home than her single room.

when they make it to the dorm, the girls lead her straight to their shared bed, putting her stuff aside and pulling off her shoes, sana playfully whistling as she jihyo changes into the spare pajama’s she keeps there while momo rolls her eyes and tells her to hurry up because “ _sleep is too precious to waste, park jihyo!_ ” and when jihyo thinks that they’re going to maybe go to the abandoned bed on the other side of the room, just to give her some actual peaceful resting time, she’s proven wrong as they both climb into the bed, each taking a side and leaving a space in the middle for her and jihyo wants to _sob_ because god, she might actually love these two girls.

she wastes no time climbing between them, momo’s arm taking that place back over her waist as sana slips an arm beneath her neck and plays with the hairs at the base of her neck. jihyo feels warm, she feels safe between the two people who mean the most to her. she feels the way momo tightens her hold as she sighs, the way sana hums some unfamiliar tune under her breath, feels the way their legs tangle together and their breaths mingle as they finally drift off.

maybe they really are _momosanajihyo_ , after all.


	3. (you) keep me grounded

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it's always nice to have someone looking over you - even if they're shorter than you.
> 
> or, a think-piece on how jihyo makes tzuyu feel whole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a short, supes platonic drabble because tzuyu just loves & respects jihyo so much and jihyo wants to put tzuyu in a bubble made of her affection.
> 
> // twitter: @chuuniversai

”you’ve got a little something on your face.”

tzuyu turns at the sudden breath against her ear as jihyo whispers the words to her, the two sat on the floor with their backs against the front of nayeon’s expensive couch while the other girls surround them, listening to yet another insane story that dahyun is telling. it’s a typical spot for them, really, because tzuyu feels the most comfortable at jihyo’s side. sure, she’s close with all the other girls: there’s no one she can mess with like she does with nayeon and no one who makes her laugh the hardest like jeongyeon; no one who makes her feel like she’s treated like an equal like momo does and no one who makes her smile the way sana does with her never ending flirting; mina’s the only one who lets tzuyu sit in comfortable silence and dahyun never lets that silence become too long when she jumps in with an anecdote that will make tzuyu all the more fond of her. and of course, she’s close with chaeyoung, that sort of closeness happens when you’re the same age and you experience things together that no one else does, and it makes tzuyu feel whole when she and chaeyoung just enjoy their youth together.

but with jihyo, it’s different. with jihyo, it’s as if tzuyu is just herself with no gimmicks. with jihyo, tzuyu laughs a lot and smiles a lot and always remembers to take things a little less seriously so jihyo doesn’t get that little crease in the middle of her forehead before she tells tzuyu _again_ that not everything needs to be so stiff all the time.

tzuyu jumps slightly at the sudden touch on her face, eyes crossing in the middle as she tries to look at the fingers brushing across her upper right lip and then slightly across her cheek before the older girl is basically scrubbing at whatever is still staining tzuyu’s skin, jihyo muttering under her breath, “i tell the girl she has something on her face and she spaces out instead!” and tzuyu laughs under her breath because of course jihyo wouldn’t let it go or just remind her again. of course jihyo would just take matters into her own hands because that was what jihyo does best – what she has always done best.

(the first time tzuyu met jihyo was at the orientation for incoming freshman to the campus. tzuyu was slightly taken aback by the way jihyo approached then, loud and wide-eyed and happy to introduce herself to all the new students that would be entering the school, going on and on about the classes and the campus and the clubs and how they would fit in great and that if they had any questions that they could come ask her anything, anytime.

taken aback or not, tzuyu thought it was a good thing for a freshman guide to be that involved in their lives, to care enough to genuinely offer her services whenever needed, even going as far as to give them all her number.

(turns out, though, jihyo wasn’t a freshman guide or a part of the touring committee at all. because three days later when classes started and tzuyu was even more lost on the whole “college life” to the point that she called to ask more questions, jihyo shyly, yet not at all embarrassed, admitted that she was just an overzealous sophomore who just wanted to take care of the freshman and make their lives a little easier.)

but that was jihyo, just taking control. and tzuyu knew then that it’d be a constant in her life.)

”sorry,” tzuyu finally says after what feels like ages, swatting jihyo’s hand from her face playfully. jihyo pouts at the action and tzuyu rolls her eyes good naturedly because jihyo’s pout may be powerful enough to get even jeongyeon to give into her, but tzuyu will not give her the satisfaction right now. instead, she reaches up to pat the top of jihyo’s head, making sure to squish and ruin the bun she lazily pulled her hair into, then, “if you keep pouting, you’ll get wrinkles. and you can’t look older than you already are because i can’t be seen with an old woman. it’s unsightly!”

jihyo gasps dramatically, hand coming to clutch at her chest as if her heart’s stopping and if that doesn’t make tzuyu laugh, then the absolute affronted look that comes on her face does. this is what tzuyu likes the most, the way they play off each other. because, if jihyo isn’t doting on her and treating her like the baby she claims she is, then she’s trying her hardest to destroy tzuyu when it comes to small, playful jabs. they bounce off each other, she notes, and she enjoys it because it’s something she never really had until she met jihyo.

but tzuyu knows that people think their relationship is more than it is. they think tzuyu is in love because of the way she speaks about jihyo. and she gets it, she does. she isn’t quiet when it comes to singing her praises about the older girl when it’s necessary and she doesn’t shy away from the affection that jihyo so easily offers, even going so far as to drape herself across jihyo herself when she’s feeling particularly affectionate because she knows jihyo appreciates the physical display of love from others. she’s seen the worried looks that nayeon has given her a few times before ( _”a lot of people have fallen for jihyo, tzu, and it doesn’t always win in their favor – be careful.”)_ and even had to drag chaeyoung off to the side and tell her to stop making jokes about her and jihyo ( _”we will not be k-i-s-s-i-n-g or anything in a tree, chae!”_ ). so tzuyu knows and she understands.

but even though tzuyu loves jihyo, she doesn’t _love_ her. when she looks at jihyo and gets that warm, comfortable feeling around her, it isn’t because she wants to kiss her or hold her all night. she doesn’t love the older girl the way her parents love each other or the way you should love someone you have an interest in. she loves jihyo because jihyo loves her back, plain and simple. sure, jihyo babies her and coddles her sometimes and makes fun of her, but it’s in a way that reminds tzuyu of the way an older sister would. jihyo makes sure tzuyu wakes up for classes on days when she knows she stayed up too late the night before studying. she comes over to her dorm on nights when sana and momo are out of the house and cooks her dinner to make sure she eats properly. she always treats tzuyu to an extra coffee or snacks at the movies when they all go out even when tzuyu insists she can buy her own. she takes care of tzuyu and that’s why she loves her.

jihyo still looks put off, but if it’s from her remark about her age earlier or dahyun’s never-ending story ( _”somehow my foot got stuck in this anthill and i had no way to pull it out ‘cause my hand was still holding all these fireworks and my—“_ ), tzuyu doesn’t really know. but instead of saying anything, she just lets her body sag against the couch, just enough so she can comfortably lay her head on jihyo’s shoulder, her usual spot at times like these. she’s aware that the older girl knows her remark was a joke, that she really doesn’t think jihyo is old-looking, but this is her silent way of clearing the air anyway, just to make sure she really knows. jihyo laughs quietly under her breath at the move because of course she knows it was a joke, the sound just loud enough for tzuyu to hear the amusement in her voice, and pats the top of tzuyu’s head.

”you’re lucky i love you, kid.

and she is.


	4. you and me & the devil makes three (2 of 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> when the "what if?" becomes the "is it?"
> 
> or, jihyo finds herself stuck in a confusing cycle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> // twitter: @chuuniversai

it’s just barely three weeks later when jihyo realizes how truly deep she is.

she’s _just_ closed her eyes for a much needed nap when there’s a loud knock on her door, quickly followed by a series of even louder knocks not even two seconds after. jihyo wants to yell at whoever it is to go away, because this is her only opportunity to get some rest before she has to go to a study group later that she knows will go well into the night and even slip into the morning, and she just wants at least thirty minutes of shut eye. and she thinks that maybe, just maybe, her silent prayers for them to go away has been answered because the knocking stops abruptly and jihyo makes herself more comfortable in her bed only to jolt upwards a moment later as her dorm room door is unlocked and then ungracefully pushed open, sana standing on the other side, a sheepish smile on her face at the resounding bang of the door hitting the wall.

jihyo knows better than to question how sana was able to unlock her door (she hazily remembers a heavily intoxicated version of herself going on and on about how all the girls needed keys to each others dorms because what if she ran out of cup ramen in her dorm and needed to “borrow” some from mina when she wasn’t home?) and just stares at the girl as she steps in and closes the door behind her. sana says nothing as she slips off her shoes, her bag dropped to the floor beside them, and makes her way to jihyo’s bed to sit on the edge beside her, the smile on her face curling into something softer and warmer once she properly looks at jihyo.

”were you about to sleep?” she asks after a moment of them just watching each other, her hand reaching out to pat down a few stray hairs against jihyo’s head. jihyo shakes her head quickly, maybe too quickly because sana laughs a moment later, and then she’s sitting up properly, sleeping the last thing on her mind. because maybe she was about to sleep, but so what, sana’s there and sana just may be a bit more important than sleep right now. but it’s obvious that sana doesn’t believe her, because she just smiles that _you’re-so-silly_ smile she has and pushes at jihyo’s shoulder, silently telling her to lay down again.

jihyo allows herself to be guided, turning on her side a moment later to look up at sana, the silent question of whether she’s going to leave and let jihyo sleep or stay and just busy herself around the dorm until jihyo wakes up. the answer to her unasked question is neither, because sana just slips into the bed behind her, an arm lazily slung over her waist and her forehead pressed against the back of jihyo’s, voice quiet and warm and washing over her skin as she whispers, “sleep, ‘hyo, just sleep.”

\------

it’s not until jihyo’s halfway to the library for her study group, a coffee sana had went out and gotten her while she was showering in hand, a flurry of texts in her phone from the girl about how jihyo better not forget that they're all going to the movies the next day, that she questions why sana was there holding and napping with her and not out with momo like she usually is on the days they know jihyo has study group.

 

* * *

 

after that, jihyo avoids being alone with sana and momo. she feels guilty over the whole napping situation, both to sana and momo, because she isn’t dating either of them and it’s not fair to put herself in a spot that makes it seem otherwise. she knows that the’ve napped together before, but it was always with the both of them, or all the girls just falling asleep together, never just her alone with one of them. and sure, maybe she’s making it bigger than it is because of course sana probably just saw it as them sharing a bed and most likely even told momo about it after she left, but to jihyo it means something a little bit more. because she likes them and she likes the way being with them makes her feel, and being with sana like that made her feel like maybe, just maybe, she was truly a part of what they had.

apparently, her plan to avoid them isn’t as subtle as she thought, because momo literally corners her three days later when she’s picking up food. it’s the same sushi place momo first took her to when they were just getting to know each other and jihyo wants to curse at the sky for the irony of it all because of course the confrontation would be here and with momo of all people. she can’t even look momo in the eye, the only thought swirling her head being how she can get out of there as quickly as possible, and it seems momo knows this because she just reaches out and gently grabs jihyo’s wrist, grounding her in this moment, forcing her to face it head on.

momo isn’t dumb and jihyo knows this. she makes it a point to constantly point out how clever and smart and bright momo is whenever some jerk on campus claims otherwise. because even if people want to lie and say she isn’t, momo is one of the quickest and most mature people jihyo’s met in her life; so it makes her feel slightly guilty to think that momo wouldn’t figure out her plan since she knows better than to try and put one over on her. momo leads her toward an unoccupied table near the back, gently tugging her down into the seat beside her and just stares at her, practically reading jihyo’s deepest thoughts without even a word said between them. jihyo’s never kept many secrets since she got close with the girls, claiming that it was better to let them know her entirely than whatever bits and pieces she shared, and she knows momo took that to heart the most. she made it a point to get to know jihyo and it shows now, because she leans back, seemingly finding what she had been searching for while looking at her, and just _sighs_.

at that, jihyo instantly feels like she’s let momo down. because, since she’s met her, they’ve made an unspoken pact to be there for each other and to not let anything come between them. yet, here’s jihyo instantly doing just that because she let herself fall into this deep hole of guilt over something that most people would have brushed off as nothing more than something that friends just do. so she’s reaching out and grabbing at momo’s hands, apology after apology slipping past her lips, words jumbling over how sorry she is that she’s been ignoring her and that she’ll never do it again because it was so dumb. and momo takes it all, allowing jihyo to get it out of her system, and when she’s exhausted herself with apologies and promises to never do it again, momo does the unthinkable and pulls her into a hug.

momo tsks in her ear and pats the back of jihyo’s head, laughing that quiet and endearing laugh as she breaks their hug and stares at jihyo again, this time with a smile on her face. momo doesn’t question her apologies, doesn’t even call her out on ignoring her in the first place, doesn’t yell or walk out on her like any other person would – just stares and smile. so jihyo smiles, wary and unsure, but a smile nonetheless, because this is why she likes momo, because she _understands_ without judgement and without punishment. after a moment of them just watching each other, momo stands, motioning for jihyo to stay put, and then she’s rushing off to the front counter, picking up the tray of food jihyo forgot she’s ordered and bringing it back to the table, sitting down and telling jihyo to “dig in before it gets cold.”

\------

fifteen minutes later when jihyo’s nearly choking on a laugh around her california roll as momo recounts how she accidentally put a hole in the wall of the dance team’s practice room the other day, momo patting her back and offering her a sip of her cola (jihyo had rolled her eyes when momo denied the offer of water because _where’s the flavor in water, jihyo? i need flavor!_ ), that jihyo realizes she’s been sharing her food with the older girl, yet momo’s had a to go order for two sitting on the edge of the table the entire time.

 

* * *

 

this time, instead of ignoring the two once she realizes it’s the second time she’s kept them apart by accident, jihyo allows her time with momo and sana to go on as it usually does. she still walks them to class and they still walk her back to her single before heading to their shared. they all still study together and cuddle during movie night. only now, sometimes, when jihyo wakes up from a nap, sana’s suddenly there and sleeping beside her when she wasn’t before. now, when she’s debating what to eat in the campus cafeteria, momo pops up and offers to buy her lunch off campus. they’re still _momoandsana_ , but now, jihyo’s somehow truly thrown into the mix in a way she’s never imagined.

so she doesn’t question it, nor does she stop it. she just lets it go on, lets it become a thing that happens sometimes. she ignores the seemingly knowing looks nayeon throws her after she claimed to have seen her and momo walking out of the newest diner downtown, doesn’t meet the curious and questioning gaze of chaeyoung when she walks into jihyo’s room for help with her literature essay and sees sana asleep on her bed while she’s only in a towel, fresh from a shower. she just lets it happen, because a part of jihyo is a little selfish, because this is what she’s wanted. and if she can get it, even in these twisted means, then she’ll ignore ever look and question and live in the moment.

it is what it is, and jihyo will hold onto it until she just can’t anymore.


	5. love can go four ways

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> or, eunwoo and seungwan have a laugh over crushes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kind of a crackfic but it is what it is.  
> enjoy!
> 
> // twitter: @chuuniversai

eunwoo’s halfway through the 2nd verse of her solo when jieqiong practically rams through the campus theater double doors, each reverberating off the walls with a resounding bang, the girl not even stopping in her quick strides to apologize for her reckless actions. the sound effectively pulls eunwoo from the state of mind she put herself in (she had _just_ successfully convinced herself that she was, in fact, a widowed mother of three, poor and desperate on the streets of 19th century paris) and turns abruptly, staring her girlfriend down as she continues down the aisle toward the stage. eunwoo sighs, knowing that, just by her having some association with jieqiong, she’s a helping hand in ruining the practice they’d been at for the last four hours.

she turns from where jieqiong now stands side-stage, ignoring the exaggerated hand signs the girl is doing to try to get her to come over, and bows deeply to the other students around her, apologies flying from her lips without rest. they all seem to understand – this isn’t the first time that jieqiong had burst in nor will it be the last – and the director calls for twenty, nodding toward eunwoo to know that twenty is _all_ she gets (which she’s grateful for because she knows she only deserves, like, two).

jieqiong practically pulls eunwoo straight off the stage once she’s close enough, the smile on her face blinding and overjoyed, and eunwoo at least takes the time to question, idly, what could have her so happy and how it wasn’t of her own doing. her questioned is answered, almost instantly, when jieqiong pulls her phone out of her back pocket, fingers a flurry as she scrolls through it before she’s shoving it right into eunwoo’s face, the screen much too close and much too bright for her to properly understand what’s so great about life. it’s only when she pushes the phone back is she able to grasp what’s going on, and yeah, she muses as she nods, she sees what has the girl so hyped.

on the phone is a selfie jieqiong had taken – and while usually, the girl is excited over her selfies because she claims they always come out so good and her beauty demands to be fawned over (eunwoo always rolls her eyes and lets jieqiong inflate her own ego) – this time, the selfie also contains the face of one kang seulgi, official campus heart-throb and the recipient of jieqiong’s schoolyard obsession.

“so you finally got a picture with her?” she questions, taking the phone and silently scrolling through (because apparently, no, it wasn’t just _a_ picture she got, it was multiple. all at different angles, with different faces, and different lighting choices or filters), stopping on one of the two both crossing their eyes and a smile comes to her face. she’s only met seulgi three times, each of which was in the dance team practice room when she went to pick up jieqiong when they stayed later than usual. seulgi was always nice and made conversation with eunwoo while she waited for jieqiong to grab her things; she even offered to buy eunwoo something to eat for all the times she’s had to wait. so yeah, seulgi is nice and eunwoo understands why jieqiong is so excited over this (and truth be told, she understands the dumb little crush, because who doesn’t have one on kang seulgi?).

jieqiong’s talking a mile a minute, going on and on about how seulgi helped her with a move she just couldn’t get down right away. how she stayed behind with her and taught her step by step until she had it down. that she even went and bought them sodas and snacks from the machines outside herself (eunwoo laughs because, wow, how romantic). she allows jieqiong to gush, a fond smile on her face, and just listens. because really, it’s cute. if eunwoo were anyone else or jieqiong had proven herself as anything but loyal, she’s sure she would be jealous. but they’ve talked about it after the first time eunwoo ever saw jieqiong smile just a little to big at suelgi and they’ve come to a mutual resting point: they both are allowed to have a weird school yard crush because they both know they won’t go anywhere and that they love each other more than they could ever love someone else.

(of course, eunwoo being eunwoo had joked about the idea of maybe, just maybe, loving jessica jung, the infamous talk of the campus senior who had graduated and then came back to be the vocal teacher for the drama club, more than she loved jieqiong.

to this day, even though they’re friendly, jieqiong still gives jessica a side-eye when she visits eunwoo during practices – it always makes eunwoo laugh.)

when a throat clears and eunwoo realizes that her twenty was up three minutes ago, she bows again to everyone waiting for her, gives a quick kiss to jieqiong’s cheek and shoos her out of the theater, waving goodbye as the girl sprints out the doors she came in, yelling over her shoulder that they’ll have a movie cuddle night when eunwoo’s done. then, eunwoo turns to the director, sheepish smile on her face and another apology on her lips. only they stop her before she can go into her winded apologies, a laugh falling from their lips and own warm smile on gracing their face.

“so, she finally got closer to seulgi, huh?” seungwan asks, her script folded and tucked under her arm, the smile on her face less warm and more teasing now. eunwoo nods, laughing, because of course seungwan would find this funny because it’s not every day that one of your actor’s girlfriend has a crush on your own girlfriend – it’s practically the plot of a teen drama, truth be told. sometimes, she and seungwan have a small laugh over the fact that jieqiong is so enamored with the older girl’s girlfriend, the two deeming it better to not mention that seungwan has been dating seulgi since they were sophomores in _high school_ , just letting jieqiong live in her little bubble. when eunwoo had found out herself, she was surprised, but not by much because she had seen the way the two acted together whenever she caught glimpses of them around campus.

(so when seungwan entered the drama department one day, script in hand and asking the art director if she could put on a play for her senior project, eunwoo was ecstatic with the idea of getting closer to the girl and having someone to talk to about the way their lives connected.)

“yeah, she’s excited that the one and only seulgi paid attention to her. if we aren’t careful, we could lose our relationships,” she snaps, eyes wide and voice dramatic, “like that!” seungwan laughs again, loud and long and amused by eunwoo’s dramatics, then playfully swats at her with the folded script, eyes rolling. “get back on stage, jung. i need you to be a little more dramatic for that last scene.”

eunwoo salutes, nodding seriously, because if there’s anything eunwoo is, it’s dramatic. she steps back up, though she stops and looks at seungwan, smirk on her lips, “i’ll just think of our failing relationships to get myself in the mood.” then she quickly scampers on the stage, too far to be hit by seungwan’s swinging script again.

“jung eunwoo! i’ll make you civilian number four if you keep that up!”


	6. you and me & the devil makes three (3 of 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> or, things finally fall into place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> // twitter: @chuuniversai

as jihyo stands outside momo and sana’s dorm room door, debating the pros and cons of actually knocking on the door, she thinks back to earlier that morning.

* * *

  
jihyo sits beside nayeon, the older girl sporting her _i’m older so i know what i’m talking about_ face and jihyo knows this won’t be good. whenever nayeon pulls one of them aside and tries to present herself as the oldest of their group, it usually ends one of two ways. one, she takes herself completely seriously, even if she has no idea what she’s talking about, then gets sulky when none of them actually take her advice. or two, she actually gives solid advice when they have a concern, then when they actually try and put it to use, she claims they’re only humoring her and she shuts it down. jihyo knows that better than anyone, nayeon knows she knows this too, yet it doesn’t stop her from dragging jihyo all the way from campus and back to her apartment.

so now here she sits, the subject of nayeon’s ‘superior’ face, and not knowing which way this will go.

“you know, when i was your age –” jihyo sighs, her face falling into her palms, “— i never would have let this thing go as far as you have.” there’s a snort and jihyo glances to the side, a small smile curling onto her lips at jeongyeon who’s sprawled across an armchair, casually eating from a bowl of popcorn as she flips through a magazine. she sets the magazine aside once she realizes she has their attention and looks pointedly at jihyo. “i don’t know why you’re allowing her to do this,” she ignores nayeon’s insulted _hey, rude!_ and sits up properly in the chair, setting the popcorn aside as well, “i know you, jihyo, and i know you’re doing things to the best of your ability.”

before jihyo can respond, nayeon clears her throat forcefully, sending a glare to a shrugging jeongyeon before she’s turning to jihyo again, the superior face melting away and a leaving a concerned look on her face. this is the nayeon jihyo truly knows, the one who cares and advices without judgement, who just wants the best for her. “look, we’ve all talked about it and this thing, whatever it is you’re doing with sana and momo, could end badly. we’re worried.”

jeongyeon seems surprised at the serious tone nayeon has taken, because she hums an agreement to her words before she’s moving to sit on the other side of jihyo, reaching out to wrap a comforting arm around her shoulders. jihyo sighs, leaning into her embrace, then, “i just like them both and i don’t want to somehow get in between their relationship, but it’s hard.” the two older girls share a look over jihyo’s shoulder, nayeon gently patting at jihyo’s head with a fond smile. it’s no secret to any of their group that the three have a unique relationship. she’s seen the way jihyo looks at the two, and by comparison, the way she talks about them. and it’s no surprise that momo and sana share the same sentiments. but they’re all either to shy or scared to say anything to one another and it makes for awkward air when they find themselves in questionable positions around the other girls.

nayeon drops her hand to jihyo’s knee, waits until the girl looks at her, and flashes her signature smile. “just talk to them, hyo.”

* * *

that’s how jihyo finds herself here now, just about to turn tail and save this conversation for another day when the door swings open and sana is standing before her, momo peeking over her shoulder with a grin. before she can say anything, sana’s reaching out and grabbing her arm to pull her inside, momo shutting the door behind them and following the duo to the small couch they have pushed in the corner of their room. “nayeon told us you were coming over,” sana mentions once they’re all settled, her fingers lazily slipping between jihyo’s in a loose hand hold, “she said you had something to say? sounded serious.”

jihyo curses nayeon in her head for calling ahead of time (she adds jeongyeon to the cursing for not stopping her girlfriend before she could make the call) and sighs, ignoring the duel concerned looks they share as she slouches back onto the couch. momo grabs her other hand, holding it between her own and jihyo knows she won’t be getting out of this anytime soon, so she might as well bite the bullet and get it over with. at least then, it’ll be out in the open and she can move on if all goes bad.

so she takes a deep breath and closes her eyes, “i like you – both of you. a hell of a lot and i don’t know what to do because you’re together and i would never want to ruin that so i’ve kind of just been letting what happens. and it’s not fair because it might just be friendly things for you two but it meant more to me and i just never stopped it so i’m sorry for that and i’ll understand if you’re mad at me.” jihyo takes a deep breath after her spiel, not wanting to look at either of them because the silence that follows her words is near deafening and she can feel the obvious shift in the air.

after a moment, sana’s fingers slip from hers and jihyo deflates because this is it, sana is going to yell and call her out on what she did, maybe even throw her out and end their friendship because of what she did. she steels herself, readying for the blow out, then jumps when, suddenly, arms are sliding around her shoulders and she’s getting pulled into sana’s familiar embrace, a laugh rumbling in her chest where jihyo’s head rests. “you’re so silly, jihyo. so, so silly.”

she’s confused and it must be obvious because momo laughs then and gives her hand another squeeze where she still holds it, a smile in her voice as she speaks, “we thought you knew that we liked you too and you just wanted to take it slow.” jihyo pulls away from sana just so, her eyes cutting to momo, wide and curious and slightly unbelieving, and momo nods seriously. “i’ve been taking you to café dates for the past month, jihyo. and sana,“ she juts her chin over to the other girl who’s just listening with a smile on her face, arms still loosely draping over jihyo’s shoulders, “has been sleeping with you and buying you things for the longest.” she blinks, lifting a hand to scratch at her cheek, head tilted to the side some, “did you think it meant nothing?”

jihyo alternates between nodding and shaking her head, not quite sure if she can believe what’s happening right now. all those gifts and cuddling sessions with sana were more than friendly. momo had called their times out together _dates_. so it means that while jihyo was torturing herself over coming between them, they _wanted_ her there, with them, as a whole instead of them plus her. she looks between them briefly, sees the concerned looks in their eyes over her stretching silence, then smiles softly to herself.

“so you’re telling me that you both liked me this entire time and i’m not imagining this happening right now?” sana laughs quietly, pulling jihyo back into her embrace and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “no, ‘hyo. this is very much real. we thought you were cute and wanted to spend time with you ever since we worked on that project together.” momo hums in agreement and scoots closer, throwing an arm around both of them and pulling them in, “when we got to know you better, liking you was easy. i can’t believe you didn’t know – i bought you food for crying out loud!”

jihyo laughs and hides her face away against sana’s chest, whining as they both tease her for her purposeful ignorance to everything that was right in front of her eyes. she really can’t believe that this is really happening, that everything actually, somehow, worked in her favor and that both the girls that she’s been crazy over for the past year just said they liked her back. jihyo laughs again and lifts her head slightly, looking at both of them briefly before a wide smile blooms onto her face after she allows herself to full sink into this moment.

“so what does this mean for us, then?”

sana hums, lips pouting as she thinks, and a part of jihyo still worries that this could end badly. sure, they all admitted to liking each other, but that doesn’t mean they would end their relationship for her. they’ve been together so long and jihyo has just been simply visiting their relationship for a year, so she worries that it could still end on a sour note.

it’s momo who calms her nerves with a kiss to her cheek, the smile on her face lazy but genuine, “it means that we want you as part of this relationship, too.” she looks to sana for her opinion, the girl nodding enthusiastically, then, “you were always a part of this since you showed up in our lives, jihyo. it’s just more official now.”

jihyo smiles and nods, heart thumping wildly in her chest at the mere thought of this being a real thing now.

they really are _momosanajihyo_ now.

* * *

(two days later, when they finally tell the other girls about their new relationship, nayeon stands from the couch with her fists raised in the air, a triumphant look on her face, “i told you all i knew what i was talking about!”

jeongyeon groans and pulls her back down onto the couch, mumbling an apology on the older girl’s behalf as she goes on about truly being the superior person in their group of friends.

from her spot with her head in sana’s lap and legs thrown across momo’s, jihyo smiles.)


End file.
